Powering electronic devices in a data center

ABSTRACT

A data center power connector includes a conduit that defines an inner volume; and at least one conductor that extends through the inner volume of the conduit and is configured to carry electrical power from a source of main power of a data center to at least one electronic device mounted in a rack deployed in a human-occupiable workspace of the data center and data between the at least one electronic device and a data center control system.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for poweringelectronic devices, such as servers, network devices, and otherelectronic devices, in a data center.

BACKGROUND

Data center planning, construction, and deployment to operationtypically includes a lengthy time to market factor. Shortening the timeto market for a commercial data center can be a large business driverfor financial success. One of the drivers of the lengthy time to marketto rack and server deployment in a completed data center building.Conventionally, data center information technology (IT) architecture,racks, and servers are required to be physically installed, cabled, andpowered up. Mechanical and human errors could be present during thephysical installation and powering of the racks and servers.

SUMMARY

In a general implementation, a data center power connector includes aconduit that defines an inner volume; and at least one conductor thatextends through the inner volume of the conduit and is configured tocarry electrical power from a source of main power of a data center toat least one electronic device mounted in a rack deployed in ahuman-occupiable workspace of the data center and data between the atleast one electronic device and a data center control system.

In an aspect combinable with the general implementation, the at leastone conductor includes a direct current (DC) electrical conductorconfigured to carry DC electrical power.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the DCelectrical power includes DC electrical power at a voltage less than1000 volts.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one conductor includes a alternating current (AC) electricalconductor configured to carry AC electrical power at a voltage less than600 volts.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one conductor includes a power-line communications conductor.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, thepower-line communications conductor includes one of a CAN-bus, LIN-busover power line (DC-LIN), DC-BUS, LonWorks, or SAE J1772 power-linecommunications conductor.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one conductor includes a dual conductor coupled in the conduit,where one of the dual conductors is configured to deliver electricalpower and the other of the dual conductors is configured to transmitdata.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, thedata includes identification data of the at least one electronic device.

In another general implementation, a data center power connection systemincludes a data center power-control system that is electrically coupledto a source of main power for a data center; and a plurality of powerconnectors communicably and electrically coupled to the data centerpower-control system, each of the plurality of power connectorsincluding an electrical power conductor that is configured to carry (i)electrical power from the source of main power to a plurality ofelectronic devices mounted in a rack deployed in a human-occupiableworkspace of the data center and (ii) data between the plurality ofelectronic devices and the data center power-control system.

In an aspect combinable with the general implementation, the data centerpower-control system includes at least one processor; and at least onememory storing instructions that when executed by the at least oneprocessor cause the at least one processor to perform operations thatinclude receiving, from the plurality of electronic devices, datathrough the electrical power conductor, the data including identifyinginformation associated with the plurality of electronic devices; andgenerating at least one virtual model of the data center based at leastin part on the received identifying information.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, theidentifying information includes at least one of a name, a model, or aserial number of a particular electronic device of the plurality ofelectronic devices.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, theidentifying information includes at least one of a rack designation nameof a particular rack of the plurality of racks that supports at least aportion of the plurality of electronic devices.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, one ofthe plurality of virtual models includes a geographic topology model.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects,generating at least one virtual model of the data center based at leastin part on the received identifying information includes generating thegeographic topology model by for each rack of the plurality of racks,determining a geographic location of the rack in the human-occupiableworkspace; assigning, based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation, a portion of the plurality of electronic devices to therack; and assigning the determined geographic location of the rack tothe assigned portion of electronic devices.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, one ofthe plurality of virtual models includes a cooling topology model.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects,generating at least one virtual model of the data center based at leastin part on the received identifying information includes generating thecooling topology model by for each rack of the plurality of racks,determining a geographic location of the rack in the human-occupiableworkspace based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation; determining a cooling domain, of a plurality of coolingdomains in the data center, associated with the geographic location ofthe rack; and assigning the rack to the determined cooling domain, thecooling domain including at least one cooling device that operates tocool the electronic devices supported in the rack.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, one ofthe plurality of virtual models includes a power topology model.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects,generating at least one virtual model of the data center based at leastin part on the received identifying information includes generating thepower topology model by for each rack of the plurality of racks,determining a geographic location of the rack in the human-occupiableworkspace based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation; determining a power domain, of a plurality of power domainsin the data center, associated with the geographic location of the rack;and assigning the rack to the determined power domain, the power domainincluding at least one power device that operates to deliver electricalpower to the electronic devices supported in the rack.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, one ofthe plurality of virtual models includes a networking topology model.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects,generating at least one virtual model of the data center based at leastin part on the received identifying information includes generating thenetworking topology model by for each rack of the plurality of racks,determining a geographic location of the rack in the human-occupiableworkspace based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation; determining a networking domain, of a plurality ofnetworking domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of the rack; and assigning the rack to the determinednetworking domain, the networking domain including at least onenetworking device that operates to communicably couple the electronicdevices supported in the rack to a network of the data center.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, thereceived data includes data received from the plurality of electronicdevices through the electrical power conductor at a first time instant.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, theoperations further include receiving, from the plurality of electronicdevices, additional data through the electrical power conductor at asecond time instant subsequent to the first time instant, the additionaldata including updated identifying information associated with theplurality of electronic devices; and updating the at least one virtualmodel of the data center based at least in part on the received updatedidentifying information.

In another general implementation, a method for powering electronicdevices in a data center includes electrically coupling a plurality ofpower connectors, through a power-control system of a data center, to asource of electrical power of the data center; delivering electricalpower from the source of electrical power, through respective conductorsof the plurality of power connectors, to a plurality of electronicdevices in the data center; and transmitting data, through therespective conductors, from the plurality of electronic devices to thepower-control system.

In an aspect combinable with the general implementation, the source ofelectrical power includes a source of direct current (DC) electricalpower, and the delivered electrical power includes DC electrical power.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, thedata includes identifying information associated with the plurality ofelectronic devices.

A further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects furtherincludes generating, with at least one hardware processor of thepower-control system, at least one virtual model of the data centerbased at least in part on the identifying information.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one virtual model includes a geographic topology model.

A further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects furtherincludes determining a geographic location of each of a plurality ofracks in the human-occupiable workspace; assigning, based at least inpart on the received identifying information, a portion of the pluralityof electronic devices to each rack; and assigning the determinedgeographic location of the rack to the assigned portion of electronicdevices.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one virtual model includes a cooling topology model.

A further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects furtherincludes determining a geographic location of each of a plurality ofracks in the human-occupiable workspace based at least in part on theidentifying information; determining a cooling domain, of a plurality ofcooling domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of each rack; and assigning the rack to the determined coolingdomain, the cooling domain including at least one cooling device thatoperates to cool the electronic devices supported in the rack.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one virtual model includes a power topology model.

A further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects furtherincludes determining a geographic location of each of a plurality ofracks in the human-occupiable workspace based at least in part on theidentifying information; determining a power domain, of a plurality ofpower domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of each rack; and assigning the rack to the determined powerdomain, the power domain including at least one power device thatoperates to deliver the electrical power to the electronic devicessupported in the rack.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, the atleast one virtual model includes a networking topology model.

A further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects furtherincludes determining a geographic location of each of a plurality ofracks in the human-occupiable workspace based at least in part on theidentifying information; determining a networking domain, of a pluralityof networking domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of each rack; and assigning the rack to the determinednetworking domain, the networking domain including at least onenetworking device that operates to communicably couple the electronicdevices supported in the rack to a network of the data center.

In a further aspect combinable with any of the previous aspects, each ofthe power connectors includes a first respective conductor that isconfigured to deliver electrical power from the source of electricalpower to at least a portion of the plurality of electronic devices inthe data center, and a second respective conductor that is configured totransmit data from the portion of the plurality of electronic devices tothe power-control system.

Implementations according to the present disclosure may include one ormore of the following features. For example, implementations accordingto the present disclosure may significantly make deployment,identification, inventory, and maintenance of electronic devices in adata center more efficient relative to conventional techniques. Further,implementations according to the present disclosure may provide forsafer, faster, and more flexible power delivery to electronic devices ina data center. Also, implementations according to the present disclosuremay facilitate greater redundancy of power delivery to electronicdevices in a data center.

The details of one or more implementations of the subject matterdescribed in this disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawingsand the description below. Other features, aspects, and advantages ofthe subject matter will become apparent from the description, thedrawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a schematic illustration of a top view of an exampleimplementation of a data center power system.

FIG. 1B is a schematic illustration of a top view of another exampleimplementation of a data center power system.

FIG. 1C is a schematic illustration of a side view of an exampleimplementation of a data center power system.

FIG. 1D is a schematic illustration of a side view of another exampleimplementation of a data center power system.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic illustrations of a top view and side view,respectively, of another example implementation of a data center powersystem.

FIG. 3A is a schematic illustration of a direct current (DC) data centerpower module.

FIGS. 3B-3C are schematic illustrations of example implementations ofdata centers with racks powered by one or more DC data center powermodules of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of a data center that includes acontrol system that uses a data center power connector that transferspower and data between one or more server racks.

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an example controller for a datacenter cooling system according to the present disclosure

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes implementations, such as systems,apparatus, and methods of data center power systems. In some aspects,the data center power systems include direct current (DC) power deliverysystems that supply DC power from one or more main sources of power(e.g., through one or more transformers and/or one or more rectifiers)to server racks to power electronic devices supported in the racks. Insome example implementations, a data center power system includesoverhead conductors (e.g., lines or bus bars), such as catenaryconductors that are installed within a workspace of the data center thatencloses the server racks, with a return path (ground) provided on adata center floor or as part of a rack support structure. In someaspects, the server racks may include electrical connectors, such aspantographs that enable the racks to be rolled onto the floor, grounded,and connected to the overhead conductors. Such power systems may allow aserver racks to be of variable dimensions (e.g., height, width, or both)and installed at any location on the floor, thereby enabling flexibilityof deployment.

In other example implementations, a data center power system includesfloor mounted conductors (e.g., rails) laid onto the data center flooradjacent the server racks. The configuration installed on the floor ofthe data center includes the floor-mounted conductors (e.g., rails) anda ground return path. The server racks include electrical connectors,such as current collectors or conductive shoes that electrically couplethe racks to the floor-mounted conductors. The floor-mounted conductorsare electrically connected to the main source of data center power toconduct DC electricity to the server racks.

In other example implementations, a data center power system includes aDC power module that contains multiple, concurrently maintainableconductors (e.g., bus bars). Each DC power module electrically connectsto a particular server rack and includes a transfer switch directlycoupled to the particular server rack to switch (e.g., manually orautomatically) from delivering power to the rack through one path to asource of main power to delivering power to the rack through another,separate path to the source of main power. Thus, each rack is dualsourced from the source(s) of main power to enable a loss of a powerpath to the server rack in a shutdown event, e.g., the path is shutdownfor maintenance or due to a malfunction.

In another example implementation, a data center power system includesDC power connectors that electrically couple the server racks to asource of main DC power that deliver power to the server racks andtransmit data from (or to) the racks to (or from) a control system. Thecontrol system receives the data from the server racks and virtuallymodels the data center based at least in part on the received data. Insome aspects, the DC power connectors include an interlocked connectorthat does not require a human installer to have a specifictraining/license to electrically couple the server racks to the mainpower source with the DC power connectors. When electrically coupled tothe server racks, the DC power connectors may also facilitatecommunication between the rack and the connector to enable a powerhandshake prior to the rack being powered. The DC power connectorthereby facilitates a safe power connection to the server rack.

FIG. 1A is a schematic illustration of a top view of an exampleimplementation of a data center power system 100. Generally, the DCpower system 100 operates to provide electrical power to electronicdevices, such as servers, processors, memory modules, networkingdevices, and other IT and data processing devices in a data centerbuilding 102. In some aspects, the electrical power delivered directlyto the electronic devices is direct current (DC) power from a mainsource of electrical power, such as a utility power grid, on-site powerfrom generators, solar or wind power sources, hydroelectric powersources, nuclear power sources, or other forms of power sources. In someaspects, the main source of power provides alternating current (AC)power that is converted to DC power prior to being delivered to theelectronic devices. In some aspects, one or more transformers transformthe main source of power from a medium voltage power (e.g., 13.5 kVAC,4160 VAC) to a low voltage power (e.g., 460 VAC, 230 VAC) and then to aDC power (e.g., 750 VDC, 1500 VDC) prior to being delivered to theelectronic devices. The DC power is delivered to the electronic devicesby a conductor that is at least partially exposed to a human-occupiableworkspace 104 in the data center building 102.

In certain discussions here, distinctions may be made between utility orgrid power, and local or on-site power. Unless otherwise stated, utilityor grid power is power provided generally to a number of customers by autility, and its generation and control are handled by the utility. Suchutility power may also be generated a long distance from the data centerfacility. Local or on-site power is used, for the most part, only byfacilities at the data center site, and is under control of an operatorof the data center site, as opposed to a broader utility company.On-site power may generally include a generator farm at the sameproperty as the data center farm (e.g., a large bank of engine-poweredgenerators, fuel cells, or solar cells) or near the facility, with anessentially dedicated power connection to the facility (e.g., asituation in which a data center contracts to purchase a certain amountof power from a nearby windfarm, and power connections are made directlythrough the farm and to the data center site without going through thegeneral utility electrical grid).

As shown in FIG. 1A, multiple data center racks 106 are arranged in thehuman-occupiable workspace 104 of the data center building 102. In someaspects, the racks 106 support the electronic devices, both physicallyby providing structure for the devices to be placed in and electricallyby providing electric power to the devices from the main source of power(e.g., through an rectifier, a transformer, or both). Generally, eachillustrated rack 106 (also referred to as a “server rack”) may be one ofa number of server racks within the data center building 102, which mayinclude a server farm or a co-location facility that contains variousrack mounted computer systems. Each server rack 106 may define multipleslots that are arranged in an orderly and repeating fashion within theserver rack 106, and each slot is a space in the rack into which acorresponding server rack sub-assembly 134 (shown in FIGS. 1C-1D) can beplaced and removed. For example, a server rack sub-assembly can besupported on rails that project from opposite sides of the rack 106, andwhich can define the position of the slots. Also, although multipleserver rack sub-assemblies 134 are illustrated as mounted within therack 106, there might be only a single server rack sub-assembly.

The slots, and the server rack sub-assemblies 134, can be oriented withthe illustrated horizontal arrangement (with respect to gravity) asshown in FIGS. 1C-1D. Alternatively, the slots, and the server racksub-assemblies 134, can be oriented vertically (with respect togravity). Where the slots are oriented horizontally, they may be stackedvertically in the rack 106, and where the slots are oriented vertically,they may be stacked horizontally in the rack 106.

Server rack 106, as part of a larger data center for instance, mayprovide data processing and storage capacity. In operation, a datacenter may be connected to a network, and may receive and respond tovarious requests from the network to retrieve, process, and/or storedata. In operation, for example, the server rack 106 typicallyfacilitates the communication of information over a network with userinterfaces generated by web browser applications of users who requestservices provided by applications running on computers in thedatacenter. For example, the server rack 106 may provide or help providea user who is using a web browser to access web sites on the Internet orthe World Wide Web.

The server rack sub-assembly 134 may be one of a variety of structuresthat can be mounted in a server rack. For example, in someimplementations, the server rack sub-assembly 134 may be a “tray” ortray assembly that can be slidably inserted into the server rack 106.The term “tray” is not limited to any particular arrangement, butinstead applies to motherboard or other relatively flat structuresappurtenant to a motherboard for supporting the motherboard in positionin a rack structure. In some implementations, the server racksub-assembly 134 may be a server chassis, or server container (e.g.,server box). In some implementations, the server rack sub-assembly 134may be a hard drive cage.

Each server rack sub-assembly 134 can include a frame or cage, a printedcircuit board, e.g., motherboard, supported on the frame, and one ormore electronic devices 136, e.g., a processor or memory, mounted on theprinted circuit board. The electronic devices 136 can include, forinstance, processors, memories, hard drives, network switches, or otherIT components. Other appurtenances, such as cooling devices, fans,uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) (e.g., battery modules) can bemounted to the server rack sub-assembly 134 (or otherwise to a rack106).

As shown in FIGS. 1A-1B, one or more rows 108 of data center racks 106are arranged in the data center building 102. Generally, as illustratedin FIGS. 1A-1B, multiple DC conductor assemblies 114 extend through thehuman-occupiable workspace 104 in parallel (in this example) to the rows108. In these examples, the DC conductor assemblies 114 extend inparallel to the rows 108 of server racks 106, with each row 108 having arespective DC conductor assembly 114 positioned near or adjacent a frontside 111 of the racks 106. Each DC conductor assembly 114 includes atleast one live conductor that delivers DC power from a main DC powerbranch 116 that is electrically coupled to the source of main power(e.g., through one or more transformers and rectifiers).

As further shown in FIGS. 1A-1B, multiple ground conductors 118 alsoextend through the human-occupiable workspace 104 in parallel (in thisexample) to the rows 108. In these examples, the ground conductors 118extend in parallel to the rows 108 of server racks 106, with each row108 having a respective ground conductor 118 positioned near the racks106. Each ground conductor 118 provides a low impedance path to “earth”or ground for the DC power delivered by the DC conductor assemblies 114.

With respect specifically to FIG. 1A, a data center cooling systemincludes cooling units 112 that are positioned in warm air aisles 110between adjacent rows 108 of server racks 106. Generally, each coolingunit 112 includes one or more cooling coils (e.g., water, liquid, orrefrigerant based) and one or more fans shown here as six fans mountedon top ends of the cooling units 112. In this example, the cooling units112 are positioned between adjacent rows 108 of the server racks 106,i.e., within a warm air aisle 110. In operation, the cooling units 112circulate a cooling airflow 109 through the front sides 111 of the racks106 (e.g., that are open to the human-occupiable workspace 104. Thecooling airflow 109 receives heat from electronic devices 136 in theracks 106 and warms the airflow 109 to a heated airflow 107 that entersthe warm air aisle 110. The heated airflow 107 is drawn into the coolingunits 112 (e.g., by the fans) and cooled through the one or more coolingcoils (e.g., by a flow of the chilled liquid, condenser water,refrigerant, or an electrically-powered cooler such as a Peltiercooler). The cooled airflow is circulated (e.g., by the fans) back intothe human-occupiable workspace 104 adjacent the front sides 111 of theracks 106.

In some aspects, the cooling units 112 may be fluidly coupled to asource of the cooling liquid, such as a chiller plant, one or moreevaporative cooling units (e.g., cooling towers), one or more condensingunits (e.g., in the case of direct expansion cooling), a natural sourceof cooling liquid (e.g., lake, ocean, river, or other natural body ofwater), or a combination thereof. In some aspects, the cooling units 112may be stand-alone refrigerant-based (DX) cooling units fluidly coupledto one or more condensing units located external to the data centerbuilding 102 (e.g., conventionally known as “CRAC” units).

Although FIG. 1A shows the cooling units 112 as floor-mounted (e.g.,supported on a data center floor 132 shown in FIGS. 1C-1D), the coolingunits 112 may be ceiling mounted or otherwise suspended above a finishedfloor (e.g., slab, raised floor, or otherwise). As shown in FIG. 1A, aparticular cooling unit 112 may be positioned to cool a particularnumber of racks 106 within one or more rows 108. In some aspects, thecooling units 112 may be designed or positioned between the rows 108 forredundant operation, e.g., so that cooling units 112 adjacent to aparticular unit 112 may have sufficient cooling capacity (e.g., airflow,coil size) if the particular unit 112 fails.

With respect specifically to FIG. 1B, an alternative data center coolingsystem includes cooling units 120 that are positioned at ends of coolaisles 113 and between rows 108 of the racks 106. Generally, eachcooling unit 120 includes one or more cooling coils (e.g., water,liquid, or refrigerant based) and one or more fans (e.g., mounted tocirculate a cooling airflow 119 lengthwise down the cool aisles 113). Inthis example, the cooling units 120 are positioned between adjacent rows108 of the server racks 106 so that the cooling airflow 11 travels downthe aisles 113 and through the open, front sides 111 of the racks 106.The cooling airflow 119 receives heat from electronic devices 136 in theracks 106 and warms the airflow 119 to a heated airflow 121 thatcirculates back to a return airflow entry of the units 120. The heatedairflow 121 is drawn into the cooling units 120 (e.g., by the fans) andcooled through the one or more cooling coils (e.g., by a flow of thechilled liquid, condenser water, refrigerant, or an electrically-poweredcooler such as a Peltier cooler). The cooled airflow is circulated(e.g., by the fans) back into the human-occupiable workspace 104adjacent the front sides 111 of the racks 106 in the aisles 113.

In some aspects, the cooling units 120 may be fluidly coupled to asource of the cooling liquid, such as a chiller plant, one or moreevaporative cooling units (e.g., cooling towers), one or more condensingunits (e.g., in the case of direct expansion cooling), a natural sourceof cooling liquid (e.g., lake, ocean, river, or other natural body ofwater), or a combination thereof. In some aspects, the cooling units 120may be stand-alone refrigerant-based (DX) cooling units fluidly coupledto one or more condensing units located external to the data centerbuilding 102 (e.g., conventionally known as “CRAC” units).

Although FIG. 1B shows the cooling units 120 as floor-mounted (e.g.,supported on a data center floor 132 shown in FIGS. 1C-1D), the coolingunits 120 may be ceiling mounted or otherwise suspended above a finishedfloor (e.g., slab, raised floor, or otherwise). As shown in FIG. 1B, aparticular cooling unit 120 may be positioned to cool a particularnumber of racks 106 within adjacent rows 108. In some aspects, althoughnot shown, there may be additional cooling units 120 positioned onopposite ends of the aisles 113 as those shown in FIG. 1B, e.g., forredundancy or additional cooling capacity. For example, in the case ofcooling units 120 mounted at each end of each aisle 113, each particularcooling unit 120 may be responsible for cooling about half of the racks106 within two adjacent rows (i.e., the halves closest to thatparticular unit 120). But if a cooling unit 120 at one end fails, thecooling unit 120 at the other end of the same aisle 113 may havesufficient capacity (e.g., airflow and coil capacity) to cool all of theracks 106 within two adjacent rows 108.

Turning to FIG. 1C, this figures illustrates a side view of the exampleimplementation of the data center power system 100 shown in either FIG.1A or 1B. In the implementation of the system 100 shown in FIG. 1C, theDC conductor assembly 114 is supported (e.g., by a ceiling or otheroverhead structure of the data center building 102) so that the DCconductor assembly 114 is suspended above a top of the rows 108 of theracks 106. In this example, the DC conductor assembly 114 may form acatenary power conductor to which the electronic devices 136 in theracks 106 are electrically connected. As a catenary power system, the DCconductor assembly 114 may be a rigid (e.g., bus bar) or semi-rigid(e.g., cable) conductor, shown in FIG. 1C as a conductor surface 124 atleast partially covered within the human-occupiable workspace 104 with ashroud 126 (or other non-conductive barrier) and suspended by a hanger128 (e.g., from a ceiling or other structure above the tops of the racks106).

In this example, the conductor surface 124 may, when powered by thesource of main power (e.g., DC power), be a live conductor that carrieselectricity (e.g., medium or low voltage) to the racks 106. For example,in some aspects, the conductor surface 124 may carry DC power (e.g., 750VDC, 1000 VDC). In other aspects, the conductor surface 124 may carrymedium voltage DC power (e.g., voltage below 1000 VDC), which may befurther transformed at the racks 106 to low-voltage power to serve theelectronic devices 136.

As shown in the example of FIG. 1C, each rack 106 (or at least a portionof the racks 106 within a particular row 108) may electrically couple tothe conductor surface 124 through an electrical connector 122 that ismounted to the rack(s) 106 and electrically coupled to the electronicdevices 136 in the server tray sub-assemblies 134 through a connector138. For example, the electrical connector 122 may be a pantograph (orcurrent collector) that comprises one or more connected arms that arebiased (e.g., spring loaded, hydraulically operated, electricallyoperated, or otherwise) to urge the connector 122 into electricalcontact with the conductor surface 124. In some aspects, the connectedarms may be urged by a human operator into electrical contact with theconductor surface 124.

In some aspects, the pantograph may be released or urged into electricalcontact with the conductor surface 124 when the rack 106 is moved intoan operational position. For example, as the rack 106 is deployed withinthe human-occupiable workspace 104 and into a particular row 108, therack 106 may abut against a stop 130 that is attached or coupled to thefloor 132. The stop 130 may be positioned as, e.g., a linear member(e.g., angle iron or otherwise) that extends within the human-occupiableworkspace 104 to define placements of the rows 108. Thus, deployment ofeach rack 106 may simply include moving (e.g., rolling) the rack 106(with the electronic devices 136 already installed andelectrically-coupled to the electrical connector 122) against the stop130, thereby ensuring that the rack 106 is correctly positioned withinthe row 108, to electrically couple to the DC conductor assembly 114,and to electrically couple to the ground conductor 118.

The ground conductor 118, as shown in this example, comprises aconductor that is embedded within the floor 132 (e.g., slab, raisedfloor, or other support surface) and has at least a portion of theconductor exposed to the human-occupiable workspace 104. Thus, whenmoved into position against the stop 130, the rack 106 may electricallycouple to the ground conductor 118 through conductive casters 140 (orother conductive member that is electrically connected to the rack 106).In alternative implementations, the ground conductor 118 may be mountedabove the floor 132 so that contact between the rack 106 (e.g., aconductive member of the rack 106) is above floor level.

In operation, each rack 106 may be moved into position within aparticular row 108. The rack 106 may already include the electronicdevices 136 mounted on the server-tray sub-assemblies 134 within therack 106 and electrically connected to the electrical connector 122.Once the rack 106 is moved (e.g., rolled) into a position of operation,e.g., against the stop 130 and electrically connected to the groundconductor 118, the electrical connector 122 may be urged or otherwisemoved into an electrical connection with the conductor surface 124. Insome aspects, the electrical connector 122 may only be urged (e.g.,automatically without human intervention or by human operatorintervention) into the electrical connection once the rack 106 isgrounded to the ground conductor 118. Electrical power (e.g., DC power)may then be delivered, through the conductor surface 124, through theelectrical connector 122, and to the electronic devices 136 in the rack106.

In alternative embodiments, the DC conductor assembly 114 may bepositioned at a location other than above the rows 108 of racks 106.Although above the racks 106 (and not within walking areas in thehuman-occupiable workspace 104) may be preferable, in some aspects, forexample, the DC conductor assembly 114 may be mounted to extend throughthe warm air aisles 110 at a height between the floor 132 and a top ofthe racks 106 (or above the racks 106 within the 110).

Turning to FIG. 1D, this figures illustrates another side view of theexample implementation of the data center power system 100 shown ineither FIG. 1A or 1B. In the implementation of the system 100 shown inFIG. 1D, the DC conductor assembly 114 is mounted to the floor 132 ofthe data center building 102 so that the DC conductor assembly 114 ispositioned and extends lengthwise through the data center building 102near a bottom of the rows 108 of the racks 106. In this example, the DCconductor assembly 114 may form a rail power conductor to which theelectronic devices 136 in the racks 106 are electrically connected. As arail power system, the DC conductor assembly 114 may be a rigidstructural member as a conductor that is exposed to the human-occupiableworkspace 104. Although not shown in FIG. 1D, at least a portion of therail conductor 114 may be covered or shrouded so that only a top surfaceof the rail conductor 114 may be exposed to the human-occupiableworkspace 104.

In this example, the rail conductor 114 may, when powered by the sourceof main power (e.g., DC power), be a live conductor that carrieselectricity (e.g., medium or low voltage) to the racks 106. For example,in some aspects, the rail conductor 114 may carry DC power (e.g., 750VDC, 1000 VDC). In other aspects, the rail conductor 114 may carrymedium voltage DC power (e.g., voltage below 1000 VDC), which may befurther transformed at the racks 106 to low-voltage power to serve theelectronic devices 136.

As shown in the example of FIG. 1D, each rack 106 (or at least a portionof the racks 106 within a particular row 108) may electrically couple tothe rail conductor 114 through the electrical connector 122 that ismounted, in this example, to bottom portions of the rack(s) 106 andelectrically coupled to the electronic devices 136 in the server traysub-assemblies 134 through the connector 138. For example, theelectrical connector 122 in this example may be a currentcollector/conductor shoe that comprises one or more connected arms thatare biased (e.g., spring loaded or otherwise) to urge the connector 122into electrical contact with the rail conductor 114.

In some aspects, the current collector/conductor shoe may be released orurged into electrical contact with the rail conductor 114 when the rack106 is moved into an operational position (e.g., prior to installationof the rail conductor 114 or between the stop 130 and rail conductor114). In this example, the rail conductor 114 is shown as extendingadjacent the front sides 111 of the racks 106. In alternativeimplementations, the rail conductor 114 may extend through thehuman-occupiable workspace 104 adjacent back sides of the racks 106 thatare opposite the front sides 111, such as within the warm air aisles 110

For example, as the rack 106 is deployed within the human-occupiableworkspace 104 and into a particular row 108, the rack 106 may abutagainst the stop 130 that is attached or coupled to the floor 132. Thestop 130 may be positioned as, e.g., a linear member (e.g., angle ironor otherwise) that extends within the human-occupiable workspace 104 todefine placements of the rows 108. Thus, deployment of each rack 106 maysimply include moving (e.g., rolling) the rack 106 (with the electronicdevices 136 already installed and electrically-coupled to the electricalconnector 122) against the stop 130, thereby ensuring that the rack 106is correctly positioned within the row 108, to electrically couple tothe rail conductor 114, and to electrically couple to the groundconductor 118.

The ground conductor 118, as shown in this example, comprises aconductor that is embedded within the floor 132 (e.g., slab, raisedfloor, or other support surface) and has at least a portion of theconductor exposed to the human-occupiable workspace 104. Thus, whenmoved into position against the stop 130, the rack 106 may electricallycouple to the ground conductor 118 through conductive casters 140 (orother conductive member that is electrically connected to the rack 106).

In operation, each rack 106 may be moved into position within aparticular row 108. The rack 106 may already include the electronicdevices 136 mounted on the server-tray sub-assemblies 134 within therack 106 and electrically connected to the electrical connector 122.Once the rack 106 is moved (e.g., rolled) into a position of operation,e.g., against the stop 130 and electrically connected to the groundconductor 118, the electrical connector 122 may be urged or otherwisemoved into an electrical connection with the rail conductor 114. In someaspects, the electrical connector 122 may only be urged (e.g.,automatically without human intervention or by human operatorintervention) into the electrical connection once the rack 106 isgrounded to the ground conductor 118. Electrical power (e.g., DC power)may then be delivered, through the rail conductor 114, through theelectrical connector 122, and to the electronic devices 136 in the rack106. Of course, in some aspects, the electrical connector 122 may beurged or otherwise moved into an electrical connection with multiple(e.g., two or more) rail conductors 114 (or conductor surfaces 124)simultaneously or substantially simultaneously (e.g., within seconds orless).

FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic illustrations of a top view and side view,respectively, of another example implementation of a data center powersystem 200. Generally, the DC power system 200 operates to provideelectrical power to electronic devices, such as servers, processors,memory modules, networking devices, and other IT and data processingdevices in a data center building 202. In some aspects, the electricalpower delivered directly to the electronic devices is direct current(DC) power from a main source of electrical power, such as a utilitypower grid, generators, solar or wind power sources, hydroelectric powersources, nuclear power sources, or other forms of power sources. In someaspects, the main source of power provides alternating current (AC)power that is inverted to DC power prior to being delivered to theelectronic devices. In some aspects, one or more transformers transformthe main source of power from a medium voltage power (e.g., 13.5 kVAC,4160 VAC) to a low voltage power (e.g., 460 VAC, 230 VAC) and to a DCpower (e.g., 750 VDC, 1000 VDC) prior to being delivered to theelectronic devices. The DC power is delivered to the electronic devicesby a conductor that is at least partially exposed to a human-occupiableworkspace 204 in the data center building 202.

As shown in FIG. 2A, multiple data center racks 208 are arranged in thehuman-occupiable workspace 204 of the data center building 202. In someaspects, the racks 208 support the electronic devices, both physicallyby providing structure for the devices to be placed in and electricallyby providing electric power to the devices from the main source of power(e.g., through a rectifier or power converter, a transformer, or both).Generally, each illustrated rack 208 (also referred to as a “serverrack”) may be one of a number of server racks within the data centerbuilding 202, which may include a server farm or a co-location facilitythat contains various rack mounted computer systems. Each server rack208 may define multiple slots that are arranged in an orderly andrepeating fashion within the server rack 208, and each slot is a spacein the rack into which a corresponding server rack sub-assembly 218(shown in FIG. 2B) can be placed and removed. For example, a server racksub-assembly can be supported on rails that project from opposite sidesof the rack 208, and which can define the position of the slots. Also,although multiple server rack sub-assemblies 218 are illustrated asmounted within the rack 208, there might be only a single server racksub-assembly.

The slots, and the server rack sub-assemblies 218, can be oriented withthe illustrated horizontal arrangement (with respect to gravity) asshown in FIG. 2B. Alternatively, the slots, and the server racksub-assemblies 2184, can be oriented vertically (with respect togravity). Where the slots are oriented horizontally, they may be stackedvertically in the rack 208, and where the slots are oriented vertically,they may be stacked horizontally in the rack 208.

Server rack 208, as part of a larger data center for instance, mayprovide data processing and storage capacity. In operation, a datacenter may be connected to a network, and may receive and respond tovarious requests from the network to retrieve, process, and/or storedata. In operation, for example, the server rack 208 typicallyfacilitates the communication of information over a network with userinterfaces generated by web browser applications of users who requestservices provided by applications running on computers in thedatacenter. For example, the server rack 208 may provide or help providea user who is using a web browser to access web sites on the Internet orthe World Wide Web.

The server rack sub-assembly 218 may be one of a variety of structuresthat can be mounted in a server rack. For example, in someimplementations, the server rack sub-assembly 218 may be a “tray” ortray assembly that can be slidably inserted into the server rack 208.The term “tray” is not limited to any particular arrangement, butinstead applies to motherboard or other relatively flat structuresappurtenant to a motherboard for supporting the motherboard in positionin a rack structure. In some implementations, the server racksub-assembly 218 may be a server chassis, or server container (e.g.,server box). In some implementations, the server rack sub-assembly 218may be a hard drive cage.

Each server rack sub-assembly 218 can include a frame or cage, a printedcircuit board, e.g., motherboard, supported on the frame, and one ormore electronic devices 220, e.g., a processor or memory, mounted on theprinted circuit board. The electronic devices 220 can include, forinstance, processors, memories, hard drives, network switches, or otherIT components. Other appurtenances, such as cooling devices, fans,uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) (e.g., battery modules) can bemounted to the server rack sub-assembly 218 (or otherwise to a rack208).

As shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the data center racks 106 are arranged in thedata center building 202 in groups 206 of racks 208. Generally, asillustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B, a DC conductor assembly 210 is planarlypositioned in the human-occupiable workspace 204 above the groups 206 ofracks 208. As shown, each group 206 of racks 208 may be in a circulararrangement. In other aspects, the groups 206 of racks 208 may be in anarrangement that is non-linear (e.g., not in a row), but other thancircular.

In this examples, the DC conductor assembly 210 includes a conductorsurface 211 that extends in a planar direction through thehuman-occupiable workspace 204 in above the groups 206 of server racks208. The DC conductor assembly 210 includes multiple live conductors 212and 214 that criss-cross the planar assembly 210 that delivers DC powerfrom a main DC power source (e.g., through one or more transformers andrectifiers). For example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the live conductors 212and 214 extend in respective orthogonal directions across thehuman-occupiable workspace 204. In some aspects, the live conductors 212and 214 can deliver power (e.g., DC power) to the planar surface 211 ofthe assembly 210, thereby electrically energizing the planar surface 211to become an electrically conductive surface.

As further shown in FIG. 2B, multiple ground conductors 226 also extendthrough the human-occupiable workspace 204. In this example, the groundconductors 226 extend in parallel placements through a floor 228 of thedata center building 202. Each ground conductor 226 provides a lowimpedance path to “earth” or ground (or alternatively, a high impedanceor solidly grounded system) for the DC power delivered by the DCconductor assembly 210.

Although not shown in FIG. 2A, the data center building 202 may alsoinclude a data center cooling system. For example, the data centercooling system may be similar or identical to the systems 112 or 120shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, respectively. In other aspects, a data centercooling system may include a conventional overhead cooling system or aconventional underfloor cooling system, using chilled liquid, directexpansion refrigerant, evaporative cooling, or otherwise.

Turning to FIG. 2B, this figures illustrates a side view of the exampleimplementation of the data center power system 200 shown in FIG. 2A. Inthe implementation of the system 200 shown in FIG. 2B, the DC conductorassembly 210 is supported (e.g., by a ceiling or other overheadstructure of the data center building 102) so that the DC conductorassembly 210 (and criss-crossing conductors 212 and 214 thatelectrically power the conductor surface 211) is suspended above a topof the groups 206 of the racks 206.

In this example, the conductor surface 211 may, when powered by thesource of main power (e.g., DC power) through the conductors 212 and214, be a live conductor surface that carries electricity (e.g., mediumor low voltage) to the racks 208. For example, in some aspects, theconductor surface 211 may carry DC power (e.g., 750 VDC or other voltagebelow 1000 VDC). In other aspects, the conductor surface 211 may carry aDC voltage power, which may be further transformed at the racks 208 toanother voltage power to serve the electronic devices 218.

As shown in the example of FIG. 2B, each rack 208 (or at least a portionof the racks 208 within a particular group 206) may electrically coupleto the conductor surface 211 through an electrical connector 216 that ismounted to the rack(s) 208 and electrically coupled to the electronicdevices 220 in the server tray sub-assemblies 218 through a connector222. For example, the electrical connector 216 may be a pantograph thatcomprises one or more connected arms that are biased (e.g., springloaded or otherwise) to urge the connector 216 into electrical contactwith the conductor surface 211.

In some aspects, the pantograph may be released or urged into electricalcontact with the conductor surface 211 when the rack 208 is moved intoan operational position. For example, as the rack 208 is deployed withinthe human-occupiable workspace 204 and into a particular group 206.Although FIG. 2B does not show a rack step, such as the stop 130 shownin FIGS. 1C-1D, a similar stop or guide device may be used to correctlyposition the racks 208 in the groups 206. In other aspects, an operatormay move a particular rack 208 into a group 206 without a stop or guide.For instance, because the conductor surface 211 may provide theconductive surface 211 over all or most of an area of thehuman-occupiable workspace 204 above the racks 208, the racks 208 maynot require to be placed in specific positions within thehuman-occupiable workspace 204.

Each ground conductor 226, as shown in this example, comprises aconductor that is embedded within the floor 228 (e.g., slab, raisedfloor, or other support surface) and has at least a portion of theconductor exposed to the human-occupiable workspace 204. Thus, whenmoved into position, the rack 208 may electrically couple to the groundconductor 226 through conductive casters 224 (or other conductive memberthat is electrically connected to the rack 208).

In operation, each rack 208 may be moved into position within aparticular group 206 (or, even, at random, non-grouped positions in thehuman-occupiable workspace 204). The rack 208 may already include theelectronic devices 220 mounted on the server-tray sub-assemblies 218within the rack 208 and electrically connected to the electricalconnector 216. Once the rack 208 is moved (e.g., rolled) into a positionof operation, e.g., electrically connected to the ground conductor 226,the electrical connector 216 may be urged or otherwise moved into anelectrical connection with the conductor surface 211. In some aspects,the electrical connector 216 may only be urged (e.g., automaticallywithout human intervention or by human operator intervention) into theelectrical connection once the rack 208 is grounded to the groundconductor 226. Electrical power (e.g., DC power) may then be delivered,through the conductor surface 211, through the electrical connector 216,and to the electronic devices 220 in the rack 208.

FIG. 3A is a schematic illustration of a direct current (DC) data centerpower module 300 (“DC power module 300”). Generally, the DC power module300 electrically couples multiple data center racks, or server racks, tomultiple electrical paths to a data center main power source (orsources). Further, the DC power module 300 may provide for switchable(e.g., manually or automatically) power sources for each server rack ina data center, thereby ensuring that any particular rack is connected bymultiple power source paths to one or more sources of main power forredundancy. Thus, if a particular path from a main power source becomeselectrically decoupled (e.g., through malfunction or otherwise) from theserver racks, a redundant path is available for electrical power to bedelivered to the server racks.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the DC power module 300 includes a housing 302(e.g., an enclosure, cabinet, or otherwise) that encloses multipletransfer switches 320. In some aspects, the DC power module 300 mayinclude a number of transfer switches 320 that is more than (e.g.,double) to a number of server racks within a particular group of serverracks (e.g., a row, a portion of a row, a non-linear group, orotherwise). Each transfer switch 320 may be an automatic transfer switchor manual transfer switch. For instance, each transfer switch 320 maycontrol delivering electrical power (e.g., DC power) to a particularserver rack from one power source path.

As shown in FIG. 3A, each transfer switch 320 is either coupled to amain (or first) DC power bus 304 through a main (or first) powerconnection 316 or coupled to a secondary (or second) DC power bus 306through a secondary (or second) power connection 318. Generally, themain and secondary power busses 304 and 306 may comprise bus bars (e.g.,copper bus bars). The main DC power bus 304 is electrically coupled,external to the housing 302 (and possibly outside of a data centerbuilding) to a main converter 314. The secondary DC power bus 306 iselectrically coupled, external to the housing 302 (and possibly outsideof a data center building) to a secondary converter 312. In someaspects, the main and secondary DC power busses 304 and 306 are isolated(e.g., physically, electrically, or both) within the housing 302.

Each converter 312 and 314, generally, receives electrical power fromone or more sources of main power (308 and 310) and delivers adjustedelectrical power to the respective DC power busses 304 and 306. Forexample, in some aspects, the main power sources may be a utility gridpower source 308 and a backup generator power source 310. Other sourcesof main power—independent of the utility grid power source 308 andgenerator power source 310—may include, for instance, a solar powersource, a wind power source, nuclear power source, natural gas or coalpower source, or otherwise.

The adjusted electrical power delivered by the converters 312 and 314may be adjusted from AC power to DC power. For example, the main sourcesof power 308 and 310 may generate AC power, and the converters 312 and314 may invert the AC power to DC power to deliver to the DC powermodule 300. Further, the main sources of power may generate or delivermedium voltage power (e.g., 13.5 kV) to the converters 312 and 314. Theconverters 312 and 314 (acting also as transformers) may transform thehigh voltage power to low voltage power (e.g., between 200V and 5000 V)or even a DC power (e.g., less than 1000 VDC). Thus, each of theconverter 312 and 314 may represent a power converter (e.g., from AC toDC) or as a power converter and transformer.

As shown in this example, each pair of the transfer switches 320 connectinto a single electrical conductor 322 that extends to the exterior ofthe housing 302 to electrically couple to a particular server rack(among tens, hundreds, or even of thousands of server racks) in the datacenter. Thus, in this example implementation of the DC power module 300,each server rack is electrically coupled to, and receives power (e.g.,DC power) through a particular pair of transfer switches 320.

In some aspects, the DC power busses 304 and 306 provide for separatelymaintainable bus bars that ensure that DC power is delivered from the DCpower module 300 to the server racks even if one of the busses 304 or306 is non-functional. For example, in some cases, one of the powerbusses 304 or 306 may be non-functional due to maintenance or repair. Insuch cases, each of the power busses 304 and 306 may be separatelymaintainable while the other of the busses 304 or 306 (not beingmaintained) may deliver DC power to the transfer switches 320.

FIGS. 3B-3C are schematic illustrations of example implementations ofdata centers 350 with racks 358 powered by one or more DC data centerpower modules 300 of FIG. 3A. For example, in the example data center350 of FIG. 3A, which includes a data center building 352 that defines ahuman-occupiable workspace 354, there are two DC power modules 300, witheach module 300 serving a particularly defined portion of server racks358 in the data center 350. In this example, the particular portionincludes the racks 358 that are positioned in two, adjacent rows 356.Thus, in this example, there is a unique and independent DC power module300 through which power (e.g., DC power) is provided to two rows 356 ofracks 358.

Alternatively, in some example configurations, a single row 356 of racks358 may be served (e.g., receive DC power) from a particular DC powermodule 300 (e.g., a 1 to 1 ratio of rows 358 to DC power modules 300).In some other example, configurations, a single row 356 of racks 358 maybe served (e.g., receive DC power) from two or more DC power modules 300(e.g., a 1 to n ratio of rows 358 to DC power modules 300, with n>1). Insome other example, configurations, two or more rows 356 of racks 358may be served (e.g., receive DC power) from a single DC power module 300(e.g., an n to 1 ratio of rows 358 to DC power modules 300, with n>1).Of course, in some example implementations, a number of racks 358 may begrouped in non-linear arrangement (e.g., such as a cluster or otherarrangement), and one or more DC power modules 300 may server aparticular group or groups of racks 358.

Turning to FIG. 3B, in the example data center 350 of this figure, thereare two DC power modules 300, with each module 300 serving one or moreracks 358 in several rows 356. In this example, one of the DC powermodules 300 serves a number of racks 358 in each row 356 shown in thisexample arrangement. For example, as shown, a portion 360 of each row356 of racks 358 is served by each DC power module 300. Thus, if, in thecase of a malfunction or otherwise inability for power (e.g., DC power)to be delivered from a particular DC power module 300, power (and thusoperation) is not lost for a whole row 356 of racks 358. In such anarrangement, diversity of power delivery is achieved so that a singlerow (or non-linear grouping) of server racks 358 is not renderedinoperational by a loss of a single DC power module 300.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of a data center 400 that includes apower-control system 406 that uses one or more data center powerconnectors 412 that transfers power and data between one or more serverracks 410 and the power-control system 406. Based on the transferreddata, for example, the power-control system 406 may generate one or morevirtual models of the data center 400. In some aspects, the virtualmodels may provide for increased efficiency (e.g., cost, time, manpower,and otherwise) in performing such tasks as: inventory of the serverracks 410 and one or more electronic devices supported in the racks 410;geographically identifying the server racks 410 and one or moreelectronic devices supported in the racks 410 within thehuman-occupiable workspace 404 of the data center 400; identifying theserver racks 410 and one or more electronic devices supported in theracks 410 within a network topology 404 of the data center 400;identifying the server racks 410 and one or more electronic devicessupported in the racks 410 within a cooling topology of the data center400; and identifying the server racks 410 and one or more electronicdevices supported in the racks 410 within a power topology of the datacenter 400, among other tasks.

The schematic illustration of the data center 400 in FIG. 4 issimplified in that particular structure is not shown, such as powerdelivery structure, cooling structure, and networking structure. Theexample implementation of the data center 400 in FIG. 4, therefore,could be implemented with, for example, the DC power systems shown inany one of FIGS. 1A-1D, 2A-2B, and 3A-3C, as well as other power,cooling, or networking structures that include a DC power deliverysystem for delivering DC power to electronic devices in server racks, acooling system to cool the electronic devices in the server racks, and anetworking system that communicably couples the electronic devices,where appropriate, to one or more networks, such as a local area network(“LAN”), a wide area network (“WAN”), peer-to-peer networks (havingad-hoc or static members), grid computing infrastructures, and theInternet. The example power-control system 406 is electrically coupledto a source of main power 408 (e.g., through one or more rectifiers andtransformers). Of course, in alternative implementations, the exampleimplementation of the data center 400 in FIG. 4 could be implementedwith an AC power system, as well as other power, cooling, or networkingstructures that include an AC power delivery system for delivering ACpower to electronic devices in server racks, a cooling system to coolthe electronic devices in the server racks, and a networking system thatcommunicably couples the electronic devices, where appropriate, to oneor more networks, such as a LAN, a WAN, peer-to-peer networks (havingad-hoc or static members), grid computing infrastructures, and theInternet.

As shown, the power-control system 406 is communicably and electricallycoupled to the server racks 410 through power connectors 412. Thepower-power-control system 406, in some aspects, can be acontroller-based power delivery system, e.g., a micro-processor basedpower delivery system that delivers DC power to the server racks 410.For example, the power connectors 406 can be a controller-based datacenter power module 300. The power connectors 406 can also be at least aportion of the data center power system 100 or the data center powersystem 200. Thus, the power connectors 412 can be used, in some aspects,to connect the server racks 410 to one or more DC power modules 300, theDC power conductors 114, or the DC conductor assembly 210.

Each power connector 412 can deliver AC or DC power to one or moreserver racks 410 to power electronic devices (e.g., processors, memory,networking gear, cooling devices such as fans, and otherwise). Eachpower connector 412 can also transmit data between the server racks(e.g., between the electronic devices) and the control system 406. Forexample, in some aspects, each power connector 412 includes a power-linecommunications (PLC) conductor that simultaneously transmits data and ACor DC power. The PLC conductor can be a wideband or narrowband PLCconductor and deliver digital information as well as DC power. Forexample, the PLC conductor can be one of a number of standard DC PLCconductors, such as CAN-bus, LIN-bus over power line (DC-LIN), DC-BUS,and LonWorks. As further examples, as a DC PLC conductor, the powerconnectors 412 can utilize the SAE J1772 standard for PLC.

As described previously, each power connector 412 can include a singleconductor that transmits both power and data. Alternatively, each powerconnector 412 comprises two conductors coupled within a single sheath orconduit. For example, one of the conductors can transmit data while theother of the conductors can transmit electrical power.

In operation, subsequent to electrically connecting the power-controlsystem 406 to the server racks 410 with the power connectors 412, DCpower is delivered through the power connectors 412 to the server racks410 to power the electronic devices. Upon communicably and electricallycoupling the power connectors 406 to the server racks 410, the powerconnectors 406 may initiate data transmission between the racks 410 andthe power connectors 406 to generate one or more virtual models. Forexample, once connected, the power connectors 406 may poll (or otherwiserequest information from) the server racks 412 through the powerconnectors 412. Requested information may include, for example“identity” information about the respective server racks 410 andelectronic devices supported on the server racks, such as a name, model,or serial number of each electronic device (e.g., processor, memory,switch, or otherwise) in each respective server rack 410, a server rackname or designation, and other identifying information. Such requests orpolls may be performed periodically, only once after server rackinstallation in the data center 400, each instance of movement orreplacement of a server rack or even electronic device within a serverrack, or otherwise.

Once the identifying information is communicated to the power connectors406, the power connectors 406 may build or complete one or more virtualmodels of the data center 400. One example virtual model may be ageographic topology model. For example, the power connectors 406 mayassociate the identifying information for each server rack 410, and eveneach electronic device within each server rack 410, with a specificgeographic location within the human-occupiable workspace 404 of thedata center building 402. In some aspects, the power connectors 406 mayuse GPS or other geographic association technique to associate theidentifying information with a specific geographic location. In otheraspects, prior to deployment of the server racks 410, the powerconnectors 406 may include or store a “blank” geographic topology of thedata center 400 that includes proposed locations of the server racks 410but does not include any identifying information that associatesparticular server racks 410 with the proposed locations (e.g., in rows,in groups, or otherwise). The received identifying information may,therefore, be input into the proposed locations to generate thegeographic topology virtual model. In some aspects, the generatedgeographic model may be used so that specific locations of particularserver racks 410 and individual components within the server racks 410are known. Thus, if, for example, a component fails or malfunctions, itmay be efficiently located within the data center 400 (which may includehundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of such components).

Another example virtual model may be a networking topology model. Forexample, prior to deployment of the server racks 410, the powerconnectors 406 may include or store a “blank” networking topology of thedata center 400 that includes proposed networking domains of the serverracks 410. Each networking domain may define a number of server racks410 (and electronic devices supported on such racks 410) that arecommunicably coupled on a common network within the data center 400. The“blank” networking topology may not include any identifying informationthat associates particular server racks 410 with the proposed networkdomains (e.g., that are defined by rows of racks, groups of racks, orotherwise). The received identifying information may, therefore, beinput into the proposed domains to generate the networking topologyvirtual model. In some aspects, the generated networking model may beused so that specific network domains in which particular server racks410 and individual components within the server racks 410 are includedmay be known. Thus, if, for example, a network domain fails ormalfunctions, the particular racks 410 or electronic devices withinthose racks 410 that are within the failed domain may be, for example,rerouted to another domain.

Another example virtual model may be a cooling topology model. Forexample, prior to deployment of the server racks 410, the powerconnectors 406 may include or store a “blank” cooling topology of thedata center 400 that includes proposed cooling domains of the serverracks 410. Each cooling domain may define a number of server racks 410(and electronic devices supported on such racks 410) that are cooled bya particular cooling unit (e.g., fan coil unit, CRAC unit, chiller,evaporative cooling unit such as a cooling tower, fan, pump, heat pump,condensing unit, or otherwise) within the data center 400. The “blank”cooling topology may not include any identifying information thatassociates particular server racks 410 with the proposed cooling domains(e.g., that are defined by rows of racks, groups of racks, orotherwise). The received identifying information may, therefore, beinput into the proposed domains to generate the cooling topology virtualmodel. In some aspects, the generated cooling model may be used so thatspecific cooling domains in which particular server racks 410 andindividual components within the server racks 410 are included may beknown. Thus, if, for example, a cooling domain fails or malfunctions(e.g., through failure of one or more cooling units for such domain),the particular racks 410 or electronic devices within those racks 410that are within the failed domain may be, for example, moved to anothercooling domain or another cooling domain may be adjusted (e.g., withincreased airflow or other cooling fluid flow) to cool the racks 410within the failed domain. Additionally, in some aspects, the coolingtopology may be used to determine a failure of one or more cooling unitswithin a cooling domain. For example, based on a sensed parameter (e.g.,temperature or otherwise) of a particular server rack 410, such astemperature of an electronic device in the particular rack 410,temperature of an airflow that exits the particular rack 410 (e.g., intoa warm air aisle adjacent the rack 410), or other parameter, the powerconnectors 406 may determine that one or more cooling units that serve acooling domain in which the particular server rack 410 is located havefailed or is otherwise non-functioning. Thus, maintenance or replacementof the failed cooling unit(s) may be performed.

Another example virtual model may be a power topology model. Forexample, prior to deployment of the server racks 410, the powerconnectors 406 may include or store a “blank” power topology of the datacenter 400 that includes proposed power domains of the server racks 410.Each power domain may define a number of server racks 410 (andelectronic devices supported on such racks 410) that are electricallycoupled on a common power domain within the data center 400. In someaspects, a power domain may be defined as a group of one or more serverracks 410, electronic devices, or other power consuming devices (e.g.,cooling or lighting) that receive electrical power from a particularpower conductor of the data center power system, a particular DC powermodule of the data center power system, a particular transformer of thedata center power system, a particular rectifier of the data centerpower system, a particular power source of the data center power system,or a combination of such components of the data center power system. The“blank” power topology may not include any identifying information thatassociates particular server racks 410 with the proposed power domains.The received identifying information may, therefore, be input into theproposed domains to generate the power topology virtual model and linkthe deployed server racks 410 (and associated electronic devices) withat least one of the proposed power domains). In some aspects, thegenerated power model may be used so that specific power domains inwhich particular server racks 410 and individual components within theserver racks 410 are included may be known. Thus, if, for example, apower domain (e.g., a power component that is part of such domain) failsor malfunctions, the particular racks 410 or electronic devices withinthose racks 410 that are within the failed domain may be, for example,receive power that is rerouted from another power domain.

One or more of the example virtual models may be periodically (e.g.,from time to time, at proscribed time periods, dynamically in real time,or otherwise) updated based on, for example, updated identifyinginformation. For instance, the power connectors 406 may initiate or bepolled for the identifying information to be transmitted between theracks 410 and the power connectors 406. This may occur periodically(e.g., once a week, once a month, once a day, or otherwise). This mayalso occur dynamically, such as when initiated by a data centeroperator, when one or more electronic devices or server racks areadjusted (e.g., physically or virtually), or otherwise. Identityinformation about the respective server racks 410 and electronic devicessupported on the server racks may be updated with subsequent (e.g., toinitial start-up of the server racks 410 or the data center) datatransmissions. Once the identity information is identified as beingupdated, the generated virtual model(s) may be updated with the newidentity information.

Generating the described virtual models may provide several advantagesover conventional techniques for locating server racks and/or electronicdevices within a data center. For example, conventional techniques mayinclude having a human operator visually examine and record individuallocations of each server rack (of tens, hundreds, or thousands of racksin the data center). Such visual examination and recordal is fraughtwith errors and incompleteness that is reduced or eliminated with thegenerated virtual models according to the present disclosure. Forexample, the generated virtual models may be more accurate asidentification and recordal of the server rack-specific and electronicdevice-specific identifying information is automatically performed bythe power-control system 406. Further, such identification and recordalof the server rack-specific and electronic device-specific identifyinginformation by the power-control system 406 can be initiated andcompleted at any time, as well as multiple times more easily thanconventional techniques, such as each instance of server rack orelectronic device movement, removal, or replacement. In addition,replacement of particular data center infrastructure equipment (e.g.,cooling units, power delivery components, networking components) may notaffect the generated virtual models. Also, the described virtual modelsmay provide dynamic or real time status of the server racks and/orelectronic devices for cooling requirements, power requirements, assetdiagnostics and management, as well as dynamic mapping of the datacenter floor.

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an example controller 500 (orcontrol system) for a data center power system, such as thepower-control system 406. For example, the controller 500 may becommunicably coupled with, or as a part of, a data center power systemthat includes one or more power connectors, such as the power connectors412, to provide power to one or more racks that support electronicdevices.

The controller 500 is intended to include various forms of digitalcomputers, such as printed circuit boards (PCB), processors, digitalcircuitry, or otherwise that is part of a vehicle. Additionally thesystem can include portable storage media, such as, Universal Serial Bus(USB) flash drives. For example, the USB flash drives may storeoperating systems and other applications. The USB flash drives caninclude input/output components, such as a wireless transmitter or USBconnector that may be inserted into a USB port of another computingdevice.

The controller 500 includes a processor 510, a memory 520, a storagedevice 530, and an input/output device 540. Each of the components 510,520, 530, and 540 are interconnected using a system bus 550. Theprocessor 510 is capable of processing instructions for execution withinthe controller 500. The processor may be designed using any of a numberof architectures. For example, the processor 510 may be a CISC (ComplexInstruction Set Computers) processor, a RISC (Reduced Instruction SetComputer) processor, or a MISC (Minimal Instruction Set Computer)processor.

In one implementation, the processor 510 is a single-threaded processor.In another implementation, the processor 510 is a multi-threadedprocessor. The processor 510 is capable of processing instructionsstored in the memory 520 or on the storage device 530 to displaygraphical information for a user interface on the input/output device540.

The memory 520 stores information within the controller 500. In oneimplementation, the memory 520 is a computer-readable medium. In oneimplementation, the memory 520 is a volatile memory unit. In anotherimplementation, the memory 520 is a non-volatile memory unit.

The storage device 530 is capable of providing mass storage for thecontroller 500. In one implementation, the storage device 530 is acomputer-readable medium. In various different implementations, thestorage device 530 may be a floppy disk device, a hard disk device, anoptical disk device, or a tape device.

The input/output device 540 provides input/output operations for thecontroller 500. In one implementation, the input/output device 540includes a keyboard and/or pointing device. In another implementation,the input/output device 540 includes a display unit for displayinggraphical user interfaces.

The features described can be implemented in digital electroniccircuitry, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or incombinations of them. The apparatus can be implemented in a computerprogram product tangibly embodied in an information carrier, forexample, in a machine-readable storage device for execution by aprogrammable processor; and method steps can be performed by aprogrammable processor executing a program of instructions to performfunctions of the described implementations by operating on input dataand generating output. The described features can be implementedadvantageously in one or more computer programs that are executable on aprogrammable system including at least one programmable processorcoupled to receive data and instructions from, and to transmit data andinstructions to, a data storage system, at least one input device, andat least one output device. A computer program is a set of instructionsthat can be used, directly or indirectly, in a computer to perform acertain activity or bring about a certain result. A computer program canbe written in any form of programming language, including compiled orinterpreted languages, and it can be deployed in any form, including asa stand-alone program or as a module, component, subroutine, or otherunit suitable for use in a computing environment.

Suitable processors for the execution of a program of instructionsinclude, by way of example, both general and special purposemicroprocessors, and the sole processor or one of multiple processors ofany kind of computer. Generally, a processor will receive instructionsand data from a read-only memory or a random access memory or both. Theessential elements of a computer are a processor for executinginstructions and one or more memories for storing instructions and data.Generally, a computer will also include, or be operatively coupled tocommunicate with, one or more mass storage devices for storing datafiles; such devices include magnetic disks, such as internal hard disksand removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and optical disks. Storagedevices suitable for tangibly embodying computer program instructionsand data include all forms of non-volatile memory, including by way ofexample semiconductor memory devices, such as EPROM, EEPROM, and flashmemory devices; magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removabledisks; magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. Theprocessor and the memory can be supplemented by, or incorporated in,ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits).

To provide for interaction with a user, the features can be implementedon a computer having a display device such as a CRT (cathode ray tube)or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor for displaying information tothe user and a keyboard and a pointing device such as a mouse or atrackball by which the user can provide input to the computer.Additionally, such activities can be implemented via touchscreenflat-panel displays and other appropriate mechanisms.

The features can be implemented in a control system that includes aback-end component, such as a data server, or that includes a middlewarecomponent, such as an application server or an Internet server, or thatincludes a front-end component, such as a client computer having agraphical user interface or an Internet browser, or any combination ofthem. The components of the system can be connected by any form ormedium of digital data communication such as a communication network.Examples of communication networks include a local area network (“LAN”),a wide area network (“WAN”), peer-to-peer networks (having ad-hoc orstatic members), grid computing infrastructures, and the Internet.

While this specification contains many specific implementation details,these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of anyinventions or of what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions offeatures specific to particular implementations of particularinventions. Certain features that are described in this specification inthe context of separate implementations can also be implemented incombination in a single implementation. Conversely, various featuresthat are described in the context of a single implementation can also beimplemented in multiple implementations separately or in any suitablesubcombination. Moreover, although features may be described above asacting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, oneor more features from a claimed combination can in some cases be excisedfrom the combination, and the claimed combination may be directed to asubcombination or variation of a subcombination.

Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in a particularorder, this should not be understood as requiring that such operationsbe performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, orthat all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirableresults. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processingmay be advantageous. Moreover, the separation of various systemcomponents in the implementations described above should not beunderstood as requiring such separation in all implementations, and itshould be understood that the described program components and systemscan generally be integrated together in a single software product orpackaged into multiple software products.

A number of implementations have been described. Nevertheless, it willbe understood that various modifications may be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the disclosure. For example, exampleoperations, methods, or processes described herein may include moresteps or fewer steps than those described. Further, the steps in suchexample operations, methods, or processes may be performed in differentsuccessions than that described or illustrated in the figures.Accordingly, other implementations are within the scope of the followingclaims.

1. A data center power connector, comprising: a conduit that defines aninner volume; and a conductor that extends through the inner volume ofthe conduit, the conductor configured to carry electrical power from asource of main power of a data center to at least one electronic devicemounted in a rack deployed in a human-occupiable workspace of the datacenter, the conductor configured to carry data between the at least oneelectronic device and a data center control system.
 2. The data centerpower connector of claim 1, wherein the conductor comprises a directcurrent (DC) electrical conductor configured to carry DC electricalpower.
 3. The data center power connector of claim 2, wherein the DCelectrical power comprises DC electrical power at a voltage less than1000 volts.
 4. The data center power connector of claim 1, wherein theconductor comprises a alternating current (AC) electrical conductorconfigured to carry AC electrical power at a voltage less than 600volts.
 5. The data center power connector of claim 1, wherein theconductor comprises a power-line communications conductor.
 6. The datacenter power connector of claim 5, wherein the power-line communicationsconductor comprises one of a CAN-bus, LIN-bus over power line (DC-LIN),DC-BUS, LonWorks, or SAE J1772 power-line communications conductor. 7.The data center power connector of claim 1, wherein the conductorcomprises a dual conductor coupled in the conduit, where one of the dualconductors is configured to deliver electrical power and the other ofthe dual conductors is configured to transmit data.
 8. The data centerpower connector of claim 1, wherein the data comprises identificationdata of the at least one electronic device.
 9. A data center powerconnection system, comprising: a data center power-control system thatis electrically coupled to a source of main power for a data center; anda plurality of power connectors communicably and electrically coupled tothe data center power-control system, each of the plurality of powerconnectors comprising an electrical power conductor that is configuredto carry (i) electrical power from the source of main power to aplurality of electronic devices mounted in a rack deployed in ahuman-occupiable workspace of the data center and (ii) data between theplurality of electronic devices and the data center power-controlsystem, each of the plurality of power connectors comprises a power-linecommunications conductor.
 10. The data center power connection system ofclaim 9, wherein the data center power-control system comprises: atleast one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions thatwhen executed by the at least one processor cause the at least oneprocessor to perform operations comprising: receiving, from theplurality of electronic devices, data through the electrical powerconductor, the data comprising identifying information associated withthe plurality of electronic devices; and generating at least one virtualmodel of the data center based at least in part on the receivedidentifying information.
 11. The data center power connection system ofclaim 10, wherein the identifying information comprises at least one ofa name, a model, or a serial number of a particular electronic device ofthe plurality of electronic devices.
 12. The data center powerconnection system of claim 10, wherein the identifying informationcomprises at least one of a rack designation name of a particular rackof the plurality of racks that supports at least a portion of theplurality of electronic devices.
 13. The data center power connectionsystem of claim 10, wherein one of the plurality of virtual modelscomprises a geographic topology model, and generating at least onevirtual model of the data center based at least in part on the receivedidentifying information comprises generating the geographic topologymodel by: for each rack of the plurality of racks: determining ageographic location of the rack in the human-occupiable workspace;assigning, based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation, a portion of the plurality of electronic devices to therack; and assigning the determined geographic location of the rack tothe assigned portion of electronic devices.
 14. The data center powerconnection system of claim 10, wherein one of the plurality of virtualmodels comprises a cooling topology model, and generating at least onevirtual model of the data center based at least in part on the receivedidentifying information comprises generating the cooling topology modelby: for each rack of the plurality of racks: determining a geographiclocation of the rack in the human-occupiable workspace based at least inpart on the received identifying information; determining a coolingdomain, of a plurality of cooling domains in the data center, associatedwith the geographic location of the rack; and assigning the rack to thedetermined cooling domain, the cooling domain comprising at least onecooling device that operates to cool the electronic devices supported inthe rack.
 15. The data center power connection system of claim 10,wherein one of the plurality of virtual models comprises a powertopology model, and generating at least one virtual model of the datacenter based at least in part on the received identifying informationcomprises generating the power topology model by: for each rack of theplurality of racks: determining a geographic location of the rack in thehuman-occupiable workspace based at least in part on the receivedidentifying information; determining a power domain, of a plurality ofpower domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of the rack; and assigning the rack to the determined powerdomain, the power domain comprising at least one power device thatoperates to deliver electrical power to the electronic devices supportedin the rack.
 16. The data center power connection system of claim 10,wherein one of the plurality of virtual models comprises a networkingtopology model, and generating at least one virtual model of the datacenter based at least in part on the received identifying informationcomprises generating the networking topology model by: for each rack ofthe plurality of racks: determining a geographic location of the rack inthe human-occupiable workspace based at least in part on the receivedidentifying information; determining a networking domain, of a pluralityof networking domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of the rack; and assigning the rack to the determinednetworking domain, the networking domain comprising at least onenetworking device that operates to communicably couple the electronicdevices supported in the rack to a network of the data center.
 17. Thedata center power connection system of claim 10, wherein the receiveddata comprises data received from the plurality of electronic devicesthrough the electrical power conductor at a first time instant, theoperations further comprising: receiving, from the plurality ofelectronic devices, additional data through the electrical powerconductor at a second time instant subsequent to the first time instant,the additional data comprising updated identifying informationassociated with the plurality of electronic devices; and updating the atleast one virtual model of the data center based at least in part on thereceived updated identifying information.
 18. A method for poweringelectronic devices in a data center, comprising: electrically coupling aplurality of power connectors, through a power-control system of a datacenter, to a source of electrical power of the data center; deliveringelectrical power from the source of electrical power, through respectiveconductors of the plurality of power connectors, to a plurality ofelectronic devices in the data center; and transmitting data, throughthe respective conductors, from the plurality of electronic devices tothe power-control system, wherein each of the respective conductors isconfigured to deliver the electrical power from the source of electricalpower to at least a portion of the plurality of electronic devices, andeach of the respective conductors is configured to transmit data fromthe portion of the plurality of electronic devices to the power-controlsystem.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the source of electricalpower comprises a source of direct current (DC) electrical power, andthe delivered electrical power comprises DC electrical power.
 20. Themethod of claim 18, wherein the data comprises identifying informationassociated with the plurality of electronic devices, the method furthercomprising generating, with at least one hardware processor of thepower-control system, at least one virtual model of the data centerbased at least in part on the identifying information.
 21. The method ofclaim 20, wherein the at least one virtual model comprises a geographictopology model, the method further comprising: determining a geographiclocation of each of a plurality of racks in the human-occupiableworkspace; assigning, based at least in part on the received identifyinginformation, a portion of the plurality of electronic devices to eachrack; and assigning the determined geographic location of the rack tothe assigned portion of electronic devices.
 22. The method of claim 20,wherein the at least one virtual model comprises a cooling topologymodel, the method further comprising: determining a geographic locationof each of a plurality of racks in the human-occupiable workspace basedat least in part on the identifying information; determining a coolingdomain, of a plurality of cooling domains in the data center, associatedwith the geographic location of each rack; and assigning the rack to thedetermined cooling domain, the cooling domain comprising at least onecooling device that operates to cool the electronic devices supported inthe rack.
 23. The method of claim 20, wherein the at least one virtualmodel comprises a power topology model, the method further comprising:determining a geographic location of each of a plurality of racks in thehuman-occupiable workspace based at least in part on the identifyinginformation; determining a power domain, of a plurality of power domainsin the data center, associated with the geographic location of eachrack; and assigning the rack to the determined power domain, the powerdomain comprising at least one power device that operates to deliver theelectrical power to the electronic devices supported in the rack. 24.The method of claim 20, wherein the at least one virtual model comprisesa networking topology model, the method further comprising: determininga geographic location of each of a plurality of racks in thehuman-occupiable workspace based at least in part on the identifyinginformation; determining a networking domain, of a plurality ofnetworking domains in the data center, associated with the geographiclocation of each rack; and assigning the rack to the determinednetworking domain, the networking domain comprising at least onenetworking device that operates to communicably couple the electronicdevices supported in the rack to a network of the data center.
 25. Themethod of claim 20, wherein each of the power connectors comprises afirst respective conductor that is configured to deliver electricalpower from the source of electrical power to at least a portion of theplurality of electronic devices in the data center, and a secondrespective conductor that is configured to transmit data from theportion of the plurality of electronic devices to the power-controlsystem.